The normally docile block on Sixth Street between Pine and Church contained a frightening number of men wearing wife-beaters and chin-beards last night. When I looked a little closer to make sure that those were really chin-beards, they immediately snapped into "What the heck is that guy lookin' at" mode.
I can only imagine that the rest of the city was much worse; the people I saw looked lost.
Here's an update from Jarvis Holliday (of Grown People Talking), pulled from the comments section:
Yo Giglio, I was out at Speed Street last night with a friend. Jagged Edge had just finished performing when two girls next to us started arguing and cussing each other out. I told my friend it was time to go.
I said: 'The later it gets, the drunker people become, and the more likely they are to fight. As a matter of fact, a guy who writes for Charlotte magazine wrote a story a few months ago recapping his first year in Charlotte. In the story he tells how he got BEAT UP at Speed Street.'
Then when we got to the light rail stop and were waiting for the train, a drunk guy tried to start a fight with a civil guy. The drunk guy was wearing a T-shirt that read: Redneck Rafter. I kid you not.
Please keep Yup-Town updated about all such incidents throughout the weekend. I'll be taking my camera out, and trying not to get punched in the face (again).
Friday, May 23
Thursday, May 22
How to bail your friend out of jail
A public service courtesy of Yup-Town. Because, as the previous post details, you just might need it during the debacle that is Speed Street. (People were drunk on Tryon street by lunch this afternoon. Head out of the office for fried turkey legs at your own risk.)
1) When he (or she) is in the process of being arrested, do not interfere. Even if you're 100 percent sure of his innocence, there is nothing you can do to help, no matter how well you explain what happened. But you can piss off the cops.
2) Once the situation looks relatively calm, cautiously and politely approach the officers and ask for an estimate on what time your friend will be ready to be bailed out, and where you can pick him up (this will almost certainly be 801 E 4th Street; 704-336-8100).
3) In any case, let your friend know you will be there first thing to get him out. This makes it a lot easier on him throughout.
4) Even if the officers won't give you an exact estimate, it's going to be at least four hours before he gets "processed." But don't try and go home and go to sleep, then wake up and take care of it. If you oversleep, your friend will be in a world of trouble.
5) Try the Pita Pit on Tryon to keep yourself busy; it's open until 4am.
6) Once you get to the jail, prepare to spend the majority of your time waiting for the magistrate, the person responsible for setting and receiving your friend's bail. This takes place in a large waiting room inside the building. Usually, you're just waiting in line for the magistrate to show up.
7) The first time the magistrate shows up, she might not even know who your friend is yet. Get in line, repeat.
8) Around this point your friend might start trying to call your cell phone from the pay phone in the jail (local calls only; if he's well behaved, they'll let him pull some numbers out of his cell before they take it away). You'll be yelled at if you answer. Run outside and reassure him.
9) When you finally get something worthwhile from the magistrate about bail, remember that it's cash only. They'll tell you where the nearest ATM is.
10) When you pick your friend up, greet him with your camera phone. But try to wait a few days before really rubbing it in.
1) When he (or she) is in the process of being arrested, do not interfere. Even if you're 100 percent sure of his innocence, there is nothing you can do to help, no matter how well you explain what happened. But you can piss off the cops.
2) Once the situation looks relatively calm, cautiously and politely approach the officers and ask for an estimate on what time your friend will be ready to be bailed out, and where you can pick him up (this will almost certainly be 801 E 4th Street; 704-336-8100).
3) In any case, let your friend know you will be there first thing to get him out. This makes it a lot easier on him throughout.
4) Even if the officers won't give you an exact estimate, it's going to be at least four hours before he gets "processed." But don't try and go home and go to sleep, then wake up and take care of it. If you oversleep, your friend will be in a world of trouble.
5) Try the Pita Pit on Tryon to keep yourself busy; it's open until 4am.
6) Once you get to the jail, prepare to spend the majority of your time waiting for the magistrate, the person responsible for setting and receiving your friend's bail. This takes place in a large waiting room inside the building. Usually, you're just waiting in line for the magistrate to show up.
7) The first time the magistrate shows up, she might not even know who your friend is yet. Get in line, repeat.
8) Around this point your friend might start trying to call your cell phone from the pay phone in the jail (local calls only; if he's well behaved, they'll let him pull some numbers out of his cell before they take it away). You'll be yelled at if you answer. Run outside and reassure him.
9) When you finally get something worthwhile from the magistrate about bail, remember that it's cash only. They'll tell you where the nearest ATM is.
10) When you pick your friend up, greet him with your camera phone. But try to wait a few days before really rubbing it in.
Wednesday, May 21
Speed Street. Here it comes
Apologies for the week-long break. Graduation season hit me right in the face. I can only listen to so many insurance executives and social workers give their honorary-degree acceptance speeches before my nose starts to bleed all over my loafers...
Speaking of bloody noses, Speed Street will be shutting down the city this weekend. In case you're unaware of my arrest history, this is the weekend I got thrown in jail, unfairly I might add, for getting attacked by drunken idiots. (I probably wouldn't mention this if the charges hadn't been so easily dismissed.)
In other words, don't expect a regular weekend in uptown Charlotte, especially at night. Trade Street will be blocked off and full of people wearing sleeveless shirts and Dale Jr. hats, and a lot of these people will be very drunk.
But the real worry is the police, who get extremely aggressive and arrest-happy during big uptown events like this. My own incident aside, 169 people were arrested on the Fourth of July last year, and hundreds more likely bullied into saying "yes sir" for minor offenses. One thing I learned the hard way is that to accommodate the personnel demands that come with turning center city into a police state, the county brings in a good portion of its reserves, or cops with no cars or clue and a frightening determination to assert their authori-tah.
When I told the other people in my holding cell last year that I had been arrested at Speed Street, the ones who hadn't also been arrested at Speed Street laughed at me. Apparently, it's common knowledge, at least among the regular jail crowd, that you don't go uptown during big events unless you're looking for trouble.
That being said, I'll be heading uptown this weekend, though turning and running from any potential altercations. It's nice to see people wearing ripped jeans and oversized belt buckles in places like Ri Ra's. And who can pass up a free concert featuring a Kiss tribute band on the "Budweiser Stage"?
Here's the event schedule. And here's some help for the impending traffic problems.
Good luck.
Speaking of bloody noses, Speed Street will be shutting down the city this weekend. In case you're unaware of my arrest history, this is the weekend I got thrown in jail, unfairly I might add, for getting attacked by drunken idiots. (I probably wouldn't mention this if the charges hadn't been so easily dismissed.)
In other words, don't expect a regular weekend in uptown Charlotte, especially at night. Trade Street will be blocked off and full of people wearing sleeveless shirts and Dale Jr. hats, and a lot of these people will be very drunk.But the real worry is the police, who get extremely aggressive and arrest-happy during big uptown events like this. My own incident aside, 169 people were arrested on the Fourth of July last year, and hundreds more likely bullied into saying "yes sir" for minor offenses. One thing I learned the hard way is that to accommodate the personnel demands that come with turning center city into a police state, the county brings in a good portion of its reserves, or cops with no cars or clue and a frightening determination to assert their authori-tah.
When I told the other people in my holding cell last year that I had been arrested at Speed Street, the ones who hadn't also been arrested at Speed Street laughed at me. Apparently, it's common knowledge, at least among the regular jail crowd, that you don't go uptown during big events unless you're looking for trouble.
That being said, I'll be heading uptown this weekend, though turning and running from any potential altercations. It's nice to see people wearing ripped jeans and oversized belt buckles in places like Ri Ra's. And who can pass up a free concert featuring a Kiss tribute band on the "Budweiser Stage"?
Here's the event schedule. And here's some help for the impending traffic problems.
Good luck.
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